Dr. Or Graur is an associate professor of astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth. He discovered an unusual association. Apparently, the Egyptian goddess Nut was the Milky Way.
Several Egyptian gods are associated with, directly symbolize or embody certain celestial objects. In his study, Dr. Graur reviewed 125 images of the goddess of the Nut sky. They were among 555 old Egyptian coffins dating from almost 5,000 years ago.
The great crack
Combining astronomy with Egyptology, he analyzed his possible link with the Milky Way. The findings are in Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage. In scenes that reflect the day and night sky, NUT appears as a naked and arched woman. Sometimes covered with stars or solar discs. NUT’s arched position evokes its identification with heaven and its protection of the earth.
In the outer coffin of a ammon-ra singer who lived about 3000 years ago, NUT’s appearance shows something. A distinctive and undulating black curve crosses his body from the soles of the feet to the tip of the fingers. There are stars painted in approximately equal quantities above and below the curve.
The undulating curve would represent the Milky Way and could be a representation of the great crack. It is the dark strip of dust that crosses the brilliant strip of diffuse light of the Milky Way. Compare this representation with a photograph of the Milky Way shows the marked similarity.
Simulating Egyptian skies
The study was based on a rich collection of ancient sources, including the texts of the pyramids, the texts of the Sarcophagi and the NUT book. They compared with sophisticated simulations of the Egyptian night sky. The Milky Way could have highlighted the role of NUT as heaven in Egyptian mythology. The Egyptian goddess Nut was the Milky Way.
Both the current and previous study are part of a broader project. Dr. Graur wants to catalog and study the multicultural mythology of the Milky Way. «I ran into the goddess of the Nut sky when I wrote a book on galaxies and investigated the mythology of the Milky Way. My interest woke up after a visit to a museum with my daughters. They were fascinated by the image of an arched woman and did not stop asking for stories about her, ”he said.
